Sāmoan chef Henry Onesemo named NZ's 2026 Chef of the Year

Sāmoan chef Henry Lafi Onesemo has taken out New Zealand’s top chef title, with judges praising the way he brings his culture and traditions to the fine-dining table.

Onesemo was named New Zealand’s Chef of the Year at the 2026 Cuisine Good Food Awards in Auckland on Monday night, adding another major honour to an already remarkable run for his Parnell restaurant, TALA.

The 23-seat restaurant, which Onesemo runs with his wife Debby, has also retained its coveted Three Hat ranking for a second year and places it among just six restaurants in the country to receive the top Cuisine rating this year.

But for Onesemo, the recognition is about more than awards.

Cuisine judges highlighted how his Sāmoan upbringing, childhood memories, village traditions, local ingredients, and ancestral cooking methods shape the experience at TALA.

They also recognised his leadership in the hospitality industry, his mentoring of young chefs and his work promoting Pacific culture through food.

Henry Onesemo brings Sāmoan traditions and flavours to the fine-dining table at his award-winning Auckland restaurant, TALA. Photo/Supplied

Onesemo, who is from Malaemalu in Falealili, has made it his mission to show Sāmoan food can belong on the world's biggest fine-dining stages without losing its identity.

He says retaining Three Hats is a credit to the small team behind TALA.

“To achieve 3 Hats again this year is huge, and testament to our small but amazing, dedicated team in the kitchen and front of house who always go the extra mile to make sure every guest at TALA experiences the best of fa’asāmoa while they are with us,” he says.

A dish at TALA, where Chef of the Year Henry Onesemo draws on Sāmoan flavours, traditions and cooking methods to tell stories through food. Photo/Supplied

The Chef of the Year award comes after a series of international milestones for Onesemo.

In March, TALA was named among TIME magazine's World’s Greatest Places for 2026.

Then in June, it became the first Sāmoan restaurant to receive a Michelin star when the Michelin Guide launched in Aotearoa.

Watch Henry Onesemo's interview below - held shortly after TALA was awarded a Michelin Star.

At TALA, diners of Sāmoan culture and hospitality, with dishes drawing on contemporary techniques are used to tell those stories.

An umu is also prepared during service, bringing a distinctly Sāmoan tradition into a modern fine-dining setting.

Onesemo has said the goal is not to change food to fit fine dining but to challenge what fine dining can be.

Henry Onesemo at the umu in Sāmoa last month. His cooking has taken him to the top of New Zealand’s restaurant scene. Photo/Junior S Ami

Following the Michelin win, he told William Terite on Pacific Mornings: “Maybe Sāmoan food is changing what fine dining is instead of fine dining trying to change Sāmoan food.”The latest award builds on TALA’s earlier success. It was named New Restaurant of the Year and received Two Hats at the 2024 Cuisine Good Food Awards, before moving up to Three Hats in 2025.

Last year, Onesemo also became the first Sāmoan chef recognised at The Best Chef Awards, receiving the One Knife - Excellent distinction in Milan.

Now, less than three years after TALA opened, Onesemo says the latest honour brings him back to the reason he and Debby started the restaurant.

“This was the goal for us in opening TALA – to show that Sāmoa’s food could sit alongside the best in the world,” Onesemo says.

For Onesemo, that ambition is no longer just a goal. His Sāmoan food, culture and hospitality are now recognised among the best in Aotearoa and on the world stage.